THIS invention relates to apparatus for collecting and bottling rainwater.
The collection of rainwater for drinking, gardening and other domestic purposes is well known. Typically, a water tank is arranged to be fed by a downpipe which channels water from a sloping roof into the tank. The tank is provided with a tap to allow stored rainwater to be drawn off.
Rainwater collected in this way is of dubious purity, and is likely to be contained by airborne dirt and dust which has collected on the roof, plant matter such as leaves and pollen, insects, bird and animal droppings, and industrial pollutants.
It is an object of the invention to provide an alternative system for collecting rainwater.
According to the invention there is provided rainwater collection apparatus comprising:
a container having an inlet and an outlet;
a catchment element having an outlet and defining a surface shaped to receive rainwater and to channel it towards the outlet; and
a sediment trap disposed between the outlet of the catchment element and the inlet of the container, the sediment trap comprising a chamber in communication with the outlet of the catchment element and the inlet of the container and extending below the level of the inlet of the container, so that rainwater flowing from the outlet of the catchment element flows into the chamber of the sediment trap, and then into the container when the rainwater in the chamber overflows through the inlet of the container.
The catchment element may be a cone supported above the container,
Preferably, the cone has a diameter equal to or greater than that of the container.
The cone and the container may be incorporated in a free-standing structure.
In an alternative embodiment, the catchment element may comprise a flexible sheet supported on a substrate shaped to define a rainwater receiving and channeling surface.
The substrate may be the ground, the container then being sunken into the ground below the catchment element.
The sediment trap may comprise an annular chamber disposed about the inlet of the container.
The inlet of the container may be formed in a conduit disposed within the chamber and comprise at least one opening in a side wall of the conduit.
The apparatus may include at least one drainage conduit in communication with the chamber of the sediment trap, and a valve arranged to control liquid flow through the drainage conduit.
Preferably, the valve is electrically controlled.
The apparatus may include a first liquid flow sensor arranged to detect a flow of liquid from the chamber into the drainage conduit and to generate an output signal in response thereto, and a controller responsive to the output signal to open the valve to flush the chamber for a period of time and then to close the valve again.
The apparatus may further include a second liquid flow sensor arranged to detect a flow of liquid from the chamber into the inlet of the container and to generate an output signal in response thereto, the controller being responsive to the output signal to open the valve for a period of time and then to close the valve again thereby to drain the chamber when the flow of liquid into the inlet of the container ceases.
The invention extends to a rainwater collection and bottling system comprising rainwater collection apparatus as defined above, at least one storage container for receiving rainwater from the rainwater collection apparatus, purification apparatus for purifying the rainwater, and a bottling plant for bottling the purified rainwater.
The system may further include carbonation apparatus for carbonating the purified rainwater.